Abramson, the first woman to serve in the position as top editor, replaced former executive editor Bill Keller in 2011.

“I’ve loved my run at The Times. I got to work with the best journalists in the world doing so much stand-up journalism,” Abramson said in a statement sent by the Times announcing the move. “Holding powerful institutions accountable is the mission of The Times and the hallmark of my time as executive editor, whether stories about China, government secrecy, or powerful figures and corporations.”

Baquet, who would be the first African-American to hold the newspaper’s highest editorial position, received a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting in 1988. Baquet, 57, has worked for the Times since 2007.

“There is no journalist in our newsroom or elsewhere better qualified to take on the responsibilities of executive editor at this time than Dean Baquet,” Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. said in the statement. “He is an exceptional reporter and editor with impeccable news judgment who enjoys the confidence and support of his colleagues around the world and across the organization.”

Abramson, 60, was the paper’s first female executive editor. She joined the newspaper in 1997 and was managing editor for eight years before she took the top editing position.

New York Times Co. shares fell 59 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $15.18 in afternoon trading.